new dog wont bark or play

[terrance kriedler]

Hi all, I have a rather strange situation I would like help with if anyone has had the same problem. I just got a new dog from a shelter. He is a golden retriever mix and had been in there for several months. He is 2-3 years old. I don't know if he was abused or something but he seems very "reserved". He doesn't bark at all! Last night someone knocked on the door and he just layed there and looked at it, never barked or anything.
Also, he doesn't seem to know how to play. I tried playing with a ball with him but he just looks at it. Has anyone else ever had a situation like this and if so, what did you do to make him act more like a happy dog?

[McMegan]

Hi Terrance,
How long have you had your new dog? Dogs definitely have a settling-in period as they readjust to new surroundings. Being in a shelter can be a traumatizing experience for any dog, possibly exacerbated by a painful past situation. The best thing you can do for your dog is help him to feel safe now. Dogs are affected by the past but don't spend as much time dwelling on it as humans do. They do thrive on predictability so you can help his adjustment period into your home by getting his life on a schedule that he can anticipate and look forward to (it doesn't have to be set in stone, just so that more or less the same things happen around the same time every day) and ease him into new situations with LOTS of treats and good things.

Since he's a retriever, does he show interest in food? I have a Labrador who also didn't seem to have a clue what to do with toys. We were able to rub peanut butter onto a rubber Chuck-It ball and onto a Nylabone to get him interested (it took us a LONG time to show him how a Kong is supposed to work). He now happily seeks out his Nylabone (different bone, actually - he already went through the first one) for a nice chew after walks, and dances with glee when I get down out the Chuck-it. You can also teach him "touch," a fun targeting game that has all sorts of useful, practical applications. There is a good explanation of it in Paul Owens' "The Dog Whisperer" book and elsewhere, or your local trainer can show you. Dogs who maybe didn't get a lot of socialization as puppies or were taught NOT to put things in their mouths OR ELSE seem to have difficulty figuring out how to play in this manner as adults. Luckily, retrievers are ultimately hard-wired to pick stuff up with their mouths so with patience and encouragement it's not an impossible re-learning process.

Regarding the not-barking thing, maybe this is a good thing in the long run? Regardless, you can train him proper/expected "at the door" behavior regardless of if he makes any noise or not, and then he'll always know what to do (and maybe will never be a big barker). Dogs who *do* bark at the door can be trained to offer a set number of "alert! alert! someone's here!" barks and then lie down quietly while the human operates the doorknob. You can move straight to the down-stay. Again, Paul Owens' book and DVD has a great explanation of this as does Jean Donaldson's book "Culture Clash". If you CAN get him to bark, you can put it on command (speak!) and ask for it when you want it and not otherwise, so he'll know that there are times it is okay to make noise.

He'll probably open up a bit as he becomes more settled in his new place, but now is a perfect time to reward the reserved behaviors you do like (he'll keep doing them! yay!) and work on addressing some things to make him feel more at ease and help him understand what is expected of him in his new home.